BENGALURU: Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) carried out a pavement encroachment clearance operation on Church Street in East Zone on Friday.
East Zone Commissioner Snehal R supervised the operation to clear encroachments from footpath. Shop owners were already warned many times not to encroach the footpaths.
Around 50 shops on both sides of Church Street used to display their wares on the pavement and these were cleared. Encroachments were cleared in about one-km of Church Street. Police personnel and BBMP marshals were present to maintain security. “More than 20 gangmen, two tippers and six tractors were deployed and materials kept on the pavement were seized. All shop owners have been warned not to encroach on the footpath again,” said a senior official.
The zonal commissioner said cooking food on pavements will adversely affect health and hygiene. Also, using cylinders in open spaces is more likely to cause accidents. Due to the encroachment of the footpaths, people were forced to walk on the road putting them at risk of accidents besides hindering smooth flow of traffic. Hence an effective encroachment clearance operation will be conducted in the eastern zone.
Palike reclaims 2.5 guntas of lake land
Based on a complaint, officials of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Lake Division and Revenue Department cleared encroachments and reclaimed 2.50 guntas of lake land at Kaggadasapura in Bengaluru East. The lake department is now fencing the reclaimed land which is worth over Rs 2 crore.
According to Akshath, Assistant Executive Engineer, Lake Division, Bengaluru East, sheds had come up behind the Muneshwara Temple side of the lake. These were removed using bulldozers. “The recovered land is worth over Rs 2 crore in the current market,” said Akshath.
He added that fencing is going on for the reclaimed land and the Palike officials are also following up with the Land Grabbing Prohibition Special Court to clear the permanent structures that have come up in the lake area.